Place · city goddess temple · Bangladesh
Dhākeshwarī
The 11th-century Durga temple that gives Dhaka its name — the goddess 'Dhakeshwari' (the hidden goddess) is the city deity of the Bangladeshi capital. The temple is traditionally attributed to Sena king Ballal Sen; the current structure dates to the 12th century with Mughal and British Raj additions. The deity was taken to Kumartuli, Kolkata, after the 1948 anti-Hindu riots and remains there in a replica temple; the Dhakeshwari National Temple is since 1947 the national Hindu shrine of Bangladesh. The complex includes four Shiva mandirs and a bathing tank. The Dhaka Durga Puja each October-November is one of the largest in Bangladesh.
- Function
- Sacred site & pilgrimage
- Tradition
- Shakta tradition
- Confidence
- Established / referenced
- Location
- 23.723, 90.388
Connections (1)
- Site withinDhaka
Dhakeshwari — the Shakti pitha and patron goddess of Dhaka whose temple gives the city its name — sits in Dhaka proper within the modern municipal limits. The tenth-century Sena-period foundation and the city's own founding are tied: the pre-Mughal settlement grew around the temple before the 1610 Mughal capital shift. The modern reconstruction after 1971 made Dhakeshwari Bangladesh's national temple.
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Sources
Dhakeshwari Temple
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